What precautions are you taking against the coronavirus in your poly networks?

Oh Evie, I'm sad this has disrupted your planned trip to see Puck. Right decision, yes, but still sad as you say. Hopefully it won't be too long before you can manage it

Thank you so much, fuchka. At this stage, we're hoping that Sept 25th might be my new flight there if covid has diminished enough by then (that whole being a teacher thing means that I can really only travel during school holidays). But I suspect Autumn will be pretty there.
 
Greetings and salutations, dear people.

I don't post here much (because my life is a constant whirlwind) but I'm seeking comfort today.

I'm in Paris and we're expecting that tonight we'll have an announcement that restricts us from leaving the house after 6pm (will only be allowed to go to grocery store, pharmacy, and other essential places) and doesn't allow us to leave our respective neighborhoods.

I do feel like this is the right thing to do, but my heart is aching at the idea of having to choose whether my official place of residence for the next (minimum) 45 days is with my husband or boyfriend, who live in different neighborhoods. The idea of not being able to spend time with one or the other has me on the brink of tears. We're accustomed to a 3-night-each schedule.

I might be jumping the emotional gun a little here, as it has not yet been officially announced, but it seems likely.

Is there anyone here who is in the heavily affected regions (e.g. Italy, Spain) who have been dwelling under these restrictions and cannot freely see their darlings?

I know the important thing is to do our best to limit this thing spreading, especially to people with compromised immunity. But my brain and my heart are not on the same page here!
 
Greetings and salutations, dear people.

I don't post here much (because my life is a constant whirlwind) but I'm seeking comfort today.

I'm in Paris and we're expecting that tonight we'll have an announcement that restricts us from leaving the house after 6pm (will only be allowed to go to grocery store, pharmacy, and other essential places) and doesn't allow us to leave our respective neighborhoods.

I do feel like this is the right thing to do, but my heart is aching at the idea of having to choose whether my official place of residence for the next (minimum) 45 days is with my husband or boyfriend, who live in different neighborhoods. The idea of not being able to spend time with one or the other has me on the brink of tears. We're accustomed to a 3-night-each schedule.

I might be jumping the emotional gun a little here, as it has not yet been officially announced, but it seems likely.

Is there anyone here who is in the heavily affected regions (e.g. Italy, Spain) who have been dwelling under these restrictions and cannot freely see their darlings?

I know the important thing is to do our best to limit this thing spreading, especially to people with compromised immunity. But my brain and my heart are not on the same page here!


Video call?
 
LaMeduse - I understand how you feel. I'm having the same anxiety, and feeling a bit selfish for doing so, but can't help it. I live on my own, and can't help but feel if we have restrictions on movement, i might want to make sure i'm confined with other folks. i live in the same city as one partner, who lives with my metamour, while my other partner lives in a different city. We've already agreed to cut our contact right down, and only to visit by car if at all, to practice social distancing - but he's suggested i go and stay with him now i'm working from home. But that means i won't be able to see my other partner.

It's such a small thing in the scheme of things, but like you, my heart is not with my head, and it's already making me sad.
 
I had my second "date" in several months today, with a different woman than the last one a couple of weeks ago, roughly (time is vague these days, with so much happening!).

We met for tea and breakfast at a place which was half shut down. Venues of this kind are presently half shut down in New Mexico, meaning they can go ahead and do business so long as they don't fill more than to half of capacity.

First thing is I offered her an elbow bump instead of accepting her offer of a handshake. I had just come from the bathroom, where I washed my hands thoroughly and used a paper tissue to open the doors between the bathroom and the outdoor seating in the restaurant garden.

We had a nice, friendly, easy conversation and start to getting to know one another. I would ordinarily have offered a parting hug. I'm a hugger.

We agreed we both want to hang out some more in the near future and get to know one another more.

I already have very little experience with women in the physical intimacy department, and really want to explore that aspect of life, but it's complicated due to my near complete lack of experience with women as anything other than platonic friends. (Not for lack of desire or interest.)

So coronavirus (COVID-19) and the initial shocks of global economic collapse are making it all even more challenging for me.

I sent her a note a bit ago and let her know that I'm quite interested in us eventually getting to some touch, even if platonic -- massage, cuddling, etc. -- but would be more likely to go there with her if she takes significant precautions not to become infected -- e.g., frequent hand washing, using tissues to open doors, some level of "social isolation". I was clear that I was not interested in limiting our future touches to 'platonic', but without being creepy about it, since after all we have just met.
 
LaMeduse - I understand how you feel. I'm having the same anxiety, and feeling a bit selfish for doing so, but can't help it. I live on my own, and can't help but feel if we have restrictions on movement, i might want to make sure i'm confined with other folks. i live in the same city as one partner, who lives with my metamour, while my other partner lives in a different city. We've already agreed to cut our contact right down, and only to visit by car if at all, to practice social distancing - but he's suggested i go and stay with him now i'm working from home. But that means i won't be able to see my other partner.

It's such a small thing in the scheme of things, but like you, my heart is not with my head, and it's already making me sad.

It's all very sucky, isn't it. :(
It's official for us here in France: no movement for at least 2 weeks (but it will surely and necessarily be extended).
I know we'll all get through these weird times, but it doesn't mean we're not going to have emotional reactions. ❤️
I'm just going to have to pretend I've gone on vacation and that's why I can't see Leather. Heh.
 
Yup. It sucks. Everyone went from ignoring the virus to distancing from everyone and wearing home-made masks in the course of one week.

It would be hard to see a lover now (although probably not impossible, since there are no hardcore controls). "Family visits" are alowed, but our partners are not our families. Which is also the case for mono people who don't live with their partners (yet), to be fair - I wonder if they have an easier decision to make.

I've been effectively confined at home for over a week now (restriction of movement came into effect on Monday, but I had a cold already). It's hard to start a routine, and I'm doing my best. Once the first shock ended (where I didn't feel like being social at all), I arrange to see friends online in the evening. Otherwise it's not too bad, my flat is comfy and Idealist is supposed to work here, so he drops by a few times a day.

A lot of people seem less emotional (much more able to act), I've been quite anxious. It helps to think about the little things one can do to help other people in this situation. I was going to start a sharing circle in real life - guess I'll go ahead and try to do it online. Comfort is found in taking responsibility and doing good. Also, gratitude - it could still be way worse. My country is taking precautions more or less on time... hopefully.
 
In my editing job, I just corrected part of researcher's application for funding to work on a specific idea for a covid 19 vaccine! Woohoo! He even listed the drugs and chemicals and how the trial will work. :)

That's the coolest thing I've ever edited, and I've edited thousands of small texts over the past 7 months since I started this job.
 
In my editing job, I just corrected part of researcher's application for funding to work on a specific idea for a covid 19 vaccine! Woohoo! He even listed the drugs and chemicals and how the trial will work. :)

That's the coolest thing I've ever edited, and I've edited thousands of small texts over the past 7 months since I started this job.
Yai for that!
 
I'm self-isolating at home and only going out to walk the Tiny Dog and get essential supplies. I have diabetes and high blood pressure so am at higher risk for complications from COVID-19.

I tell you I'm so grateful I have Tiny Dog and Tiny Cat. Both are in good health and keep me company.

My city is not on mandatory shut down just yet but I think that is coming. I think we will have something like what the San Francisco area did - nothing but grocery shopping and pharmacy trips allowed. (I do think outside exercise while maintaining distance is ok there too but not sure.)
 
I live in Santa Fe, NM.

The governor here just hinted very strongly that by tomorrow we may have pretty much all businesses shut down -- cafes, coffee shops, restaurants, (schools are already shut), hotels, motels... everything non-essential. We can leave our homes for grocery shopping and pharmacy … and that's about it.

Everyone here will be laying low, to say the least, and avoiding contact with others. But I still plan on growing a food garden with my neighbors and getting chicks for future chicken eggs and other basic survival stuff in the middle term, which will likely be necessary 'cause we're heading very quickly into a global Great Depression.
 
I live in Santa Fe, NM.

The governor here just hinted very strongly that by tomorrow we may have pretty much all businesses shut down -- cafes, coffee shops, restaurants, (schools are already shut), hotels, motels... everything non-essential. We can leave our homes for grocery shopping and pharmacy … and that's about it.

Everyone here will be laying low, to say the least, and avoiding contact with others. But I still plan on growing a food garden with my neighbors and getting chicks for future chicken eggs and other basic survival stuff in the middle term, which will likely be necessary 'cause we're heading very quickly into a global Great Depression.
It's going to be okay. This isn't the end of the world. The world will recover quickly once this passes.
 
I’m losing my mind.

Glasses and I are both working full-time from home and trying desperately to both be full-time parenting our young children. Its nearly impossible to both be having meetings with a 4 year old and a 7 year old squabbling in the next room. Our employers don’t seem to have any understanding of the fact that we have no childcare options and so they are putting a lot of pressure on us. Ponytail has been coming over occasionally to help out in the evenings and snuggle with me. I haven’t had sex with either of them since this all started — too exhausted.

Whiskers and I were scheduled to have a date this weekend. 5 days ago, it was still on. A couple days later it seemed irresponsible and so we cancelled. It will be a FaceTime date now. Everything is changing so fast. The messaging is inconsistent.

I don’t know what we’ll do when the kids’ online learning begins (school is cancelled for 8 days so that teachers can prepare to move learning online)— I can barely keep them occupied with TV and books and puzzles so that I can work. Having them do school — school for which they will need access to our computers....which we need for work— seems impossible. I may just need to quit my job.
 
It's going to be okay. This isn't the end of the world. The world will recover quickly once this passes.

What do you mean by "recover"? If by "recover," you mean we can (and swiftly) go back to how we were living prior to this pandemic, it is clear to me that you are either in denial or are ignorant of how very different the world must necessarily be in the future following the first great global wave of infections.

No one who understands how modern / contemporary economies operate believes that you can essentially shut down the global economy (and thus all local economies) and then simply start them back up again swiftly, as if starting a car in the morning. It doesn't work that way. Not even close.

We are already in a very long lasting Great Depression and a global financial collapse. I don't think you know what this means! You will need to consider how you are going to feed yourself in July and August. You may not be able to count on grocery stores or money to be fed. It's THAT serious. Anyone not growing gardens or community farms now is out to lunch.

When the sh*t begins to really hit the fan and you wake up to the fact that River actually knew what he was talking about, if you have no seeds, no plot of ground, and are not already woven into local emergency food production systems, you will be hungry. Unless you've stored years of food supply already. But even then you're going to get sick of eating rice and beans and not having any fresh greens.
 
I'm pretty bummed because Flame offered to drive out for the weekend (which he never does). I had to remind him that we're in lock down because of my asthma. My state has closed schools, restaurants, entertainment venues, and prohibited public gatherings of over 25. I'm glad that I already shop for rural living, which can include being stuck in for a week+ if there's a blizzard, and we're coming out of winter.

I'm glad I don't normally share physical time between partners. My heart goes out to all of you with split living situations who have to choose.
 
What do you mean by "recover"? If by "recover," you mean we can (and swiftly) go back to how we were living prior to this pandemic, it is clear to me that you are either in denial or are ignorant of how very different the world must necessarily be in the future following the first great global wave of infections.

No one who understands how modern / contemporary economies operate believes that you can essentially shut down the global economy (and thus all local economies) and then simply start them back up again swiftly, as if starting a car in the morning. It doesn't work that way. Not even close.

We are already in a very long lasting Great Depression and a global financial collapse. I don't think you know what this means! You will need to consider how you are going to feed yourself in July and August. You may not be able to count on grocery stores or money to be fed. It's THAT serious. Anyone not growing gardens or community farms now is out to lunch.

When the sh*t begins to really hit the fan and you wake up to the fact that River actually knew what he was talking about, if you have no seeds, no plot of ground, and are not already woven into local emergency food production systems, you will be hungry. Unless you've stored years of food supply already. But even then you're going to get sick of eating rice and beans and not having any fresh greens.

I disagree and I think you are being fatalistic. This is affecting everyone equally. It's not like our country is the only one suffering. Therefore, nobody will be left behind. This isn't affecting food production at all, nor will it. This isn't some deadly airborne virus that is going to take us out like The Stand. It's not like a zombie apocalypse. The majority of people who get this show little or no symptoms. We are just looking out for the people who are in danger.

The economy will bounce back quickly because this is all temporary. Hopefully the government will step in to provide some relief. There is no reason to panic. The shit has already hit the fan. It just needs cleaned up now.
 
You may not be able to count on grocery stores or money to be fed. It's THAT serious. Anyone not growing gardens or community farms now is out to lunch.

Ahh, it's good to see you back, River. Your colorful commentary has been missed. I'm glad to read that you're still dating! However, Vin is right. There is no food shortage nor even a supply chain problem. Some (not all) shelves are temporarily empty because of hoarding and people can only hoard so much before physics and reason set in. Additionally, the produce aisles seem to be full enough right now. People aren't going nutsy over carrots and there are plenty to go around, even at the height of the frenzy.
 
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I went to my local supermarket a few days ago and the produce section was loaded! Maybe things will change with the coming summer harvest. We will see.

I have a farm stand in the next town that I go to in mid to late summer and fall for local produce. I'm going to assume it will still have veggies and fruit and even bunches of flowers. Nature is fine. The farmers just have to practice hygiene. But if they are all already isolating, and show no symptoms when it's time to plant, cultivate and harvest, I don't see a huge problem.
 
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I went to my local supermarket a few days ago and the produce section was loaded! Maybe things will change with the coming summer harvest. We will see.

I have a farm stand in the next town that I go to in mid to late summer and fall for local produce. I'm going to assume it will still have veggies and fruit and even bunches of flowers. Nature is fine. The farmers just have to practice hygiene. But if they are all already isolating, and show no symptoms when it's time to plant, cultivate and harvest, I don't see a huge problem.

Somehow I think all those Mexican migrant farm workers night have missed the memo that armageddon is taking place. They are too busy fending off dysentery, and there is no wifi in their workplace.
 
Hi all -

For epidemiological insight, seek input from epidemiologists. For economic insight, talk with ecologically informed economists. I'm not a professional ecological economist, but I'm deeply informed from my in depth non-professional study of this field.

So...

Rather than responding to the skeptics about my prognosis individually, please allow me to respond to all of you together.

I'm a human ecologist and a systems thinker. As such, part of my job is to understand complex systems in their full complexity.

What I said about the potential future risks to food security cannot be evaluated within a closed system analysis, but must be understood in relation to the total system which allows us all to have not only food, but money for food -- and jobs for money, and so forth.

Food security has to be understood in relation to the total economy. How many of you have thoroughly studied these intertwined systems?

The mainstream media is -- quite naturally -- downplaying the risks to the total global economy and its financial systems. If you understand modern political systems and their attached media system, you'll know that they are part of a Big Club which is in service, most of all, to protecting the present economic paradigm and its associated systems. Their job is largely to promote confidence in the prevailing economic system -- and so they downplay its fragility as a system.

In fact, we've rarely seen such a fragile economic / financial system as the one which is now imploding. This is not just my opinion, but the opinion of many qualified economists who are rarely mentioned in the mainstream media -- for reasons obvious to those of us who study complex systems in the way I do (and they do).

Those who understand complex, intertwined systems know that artificial human systems -- like our economy and its financial sub-system -- know that it is comprised of interconnected nodes in which failure of ANY of the nodes in the network will further weaken the other nodes in that network. Those who have carefully studied the current financial / economic system in our world know it is exceptionally fragile and prone to collapse. It is, in a word, irresilient. That's not a good sign when a major shock hits the system, and coronavirus (Covid-19) is exactly the Black Swan which can only be called a major shock.

Maybe things will work out and the shock will be absorbed without leading to collapse on the scale of the last Great Depression, or worse. And you can go ahead and bet your life on that if you like. But I will not. I believe the risk level to the total financial / economic system is such that a more informed perspective suggests we may have just had the hull of our Titanic ripped open. We simply do not -- and cannot -- know if this is the case just yet, but those of us carefully watching are, frankly, VERY worried.

These sources partially explain my perspective on this:

https://www.resilience.org/stories/...y-nate-hagens-on-coronavirus-and-the-economy/

https://www.resilience.org/resilience-author/david-korowicz/

I suggest you connect with your neighbors and collaborate with them to grow family, personal and community gardens and to raise chickens. We're not going to have a "passing blip" here. This is the long haul, this time. If we are unprepared to feed ourselves and our neighbors we MAY be in real trouble in the near future.
 
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